THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. When I came
into office, I promised to look at the world’s challenges
with open eyes and very fresh thinking. We cannot solve our
problems by making the same failed assumptions and repeating
the same failed strategies of the past. Old challenges
demand new approaches.

My announcement today marks the
beginning of a new approach to conflict between Israel and
the Palestinians.

In 1995, Congress adopted the Jerusalem
Embassy Act, urging the federal government to relocate the
American embassy to Jerusalem and to recognize that that
city -- and so importantly -- is Israel’s capital. This
act passed Congress by an overwhelming bipartisan majority
and was reaffirmed by a unanimous vote of the Senate only
six months ago.

Yet, for over 20 years, every previous
American president has exercised the law’s waiver,
refusing to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem or to
recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital city.

Presidents
issued these waivers under the belief that delaying the
recognition of Jerusalem would advance the cause of peace.
Some say they lacked courage, but they made their best
judgments based on facts as they understood them at the
time. Nevertheless, the record is in. After more than two
decades of waivers, we are no closer to a lasting peace
agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. It would be
folly to assume that repeating the exact same formula would
now produce a different or better result.

Therefore, I
have determined that it is time to officially recognize
Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

While previous
presidents have made this a major campaign promise, they
failed to deliver. Today, I am delivering.

I've judged
this course of action to be in the best interests of the
United States of America and the pursuit of peace between
Israel and the Palestinians. This is a long-overdue step to
advance the peace process and to work towards a lasting
agreement.

Israel is a sovereign nation with the right
like every other sovereign nation to determine its own
capital. Acknowledging this as a fact is a necessary
condition for achieving peace.

It was 70 years ago that
the United States, under President Truman, recognized the
State of Israel. Ever since then, Israel has made its
capital in the city of Jerusalem -- the capital the Jewish
people established in ancient times. Today, Jerusalem is the
seat of the modern Israeli government. It is the home of the
Israeli parliament, the Knesset, as well as the Israeli
Supreme Court. It is the location of the official residence
of the Prime Minister and the President. It is the
headquarters of many government ministries.

For decades,
visiting American presidents, secretaries of state, and
military leaders have met their Israeli counterparts in
Jerusalem, as I did on my trip to Israel earlier this
year.

Jerusalem is not just the heart of three great
religions, but it is now also the heart of one of the most
successful democracies in the world. Over the past seven
decades, the Israeli people have built a country where Jews,
Muslims, and Christians, and people of all faiths are free
to live and worship according to their conscience and
according to their beliefs.

Jerusalem is today, and must
remain, a place where Jews pray at the Western Wall, where
Christians walk the Stations of the Cross, and where Muslims
worship at Al-Aqsa Mosque.

However, through all of these
years, presidents representing the United States have
declined to officially recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s
capital. In fact, we have declined to acknowledge any
Israeli capital at all.

But today, we finally acknowledge
the obvious: that Jerusalem is Israel’s capital. This is
nothing more, or less, than a recognition of reality. It is
also the right thing to do. It's something that has to be
done.

That is why, consistent with the Jerusalem Embassy
Act, I am also directing the State Department to begin
preparation to move the American embassy from Tel Aviv to
Jerusalem. This will immediately begin the process of hiring
architects, engineers, and planners, so that a new embassy,
when completed, will be a magnificent tribute to peace.

In
making these announcements, I also want to make one point
very clear: This decision is not intended, in any way, to
reflect a departure from our strong commitment to facilitate
a lasting peace agreement. We want an agreement that is a
great deal for the Israelis and a great deal for the
Palestinians. We are not taking a position of any final
status issues, including the specific boundaries of the
Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem, or the resolution of
contested borders. Those questions are up to the parties
involved.

The United States remains deeply committed to
helping facilitate a peace agreement that is acceptable to
both sides. I intend to do everything in my power to help
forge such an agreement. Without question, Jerusalem is one
of the most sensitive issues in those talks. The United
States would support a two-state solution if agreed to by
both sides.

In the meantime, I call on all parties to
maintain the status quo at Jerusalem's holy sites, including
the Temple Mount, also known as Haram al-Sharif.

Above
all, our greatest hope is for peace, the universal yearning
in every human soul. With today’s action, I reaffirm my
administration’s longstanding commitment to a future of
peace and security for the region.

There will, of course,
be disagreement and dissent regarding this announcement. But
we are confident that ultimately, as we work through these
disagreements, we will arrive at a peace and a place far
greater in understanding and cooperation.

This sacred city
should call forth the best in humanity, lifting our sights
to what it is possible; not pulling us back and down to the
old fights that have become so totally predictable. Peace is
never beyond the grasp of those willing to reach.

So
today, we call for calm, for moderation, and for the voices
of tolerance to prevail over the purveyors of hate. Our
children should inherit our love, not our conflicts.

I
repeat the message I delivered at the historic and
extraordinary summit in Saudi Arabia earlier this year: The
Middle East is a region rich with culture, spirit, and
history. Its people are brilliant, proud, and diverse,
vibrant and strong. But the incredible future awaiting this
region is held at bay by bloodshed, ignorance, and
terror.

Vice President Pence will travel to the region in
the coming days to reaffirm our commitment to work with
partners throughout the Middle East to defeat radicalism
that threatens the hopes and dreams of future
generations.

It is time for the many who desire peace to
expel the extremists from their midst. It is time for all
civilized nations, and people, to respond to disagreement
with reasoned debate –- not violence.

And it is time for
young and moderate voices all across the Middle East to
claim for themselves a bright and beautiful future.

So
today, let us rededicate ourselves to a path of mutual
understanding and respect. Let us rethink old assumptions
and open our hearts and minds to possible and possibilities.
And finally, I ask the leaders of the region -- political
and religious; Israeli and Palestinian; Jewish and Christian
and Muslim -- to join us in the noble quest for lasting
peace.

President Donald J.
Trump's Proclamation on Jerusalem as the Capital of the
State of Israel

“My announcement today marks
the beginning of a new approach to the conflict between
Israel and the Palestinians.” – President Donald J.
Trump

RECOGNIZING JERUSALEM: President Donald
J. Trump is following through on his promise to recognize
Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel and has
instructed the State Department to begin to relocate the
U.S. Embassy to Israel from Tel Aviv to
Jerusalem.

• Today, December 6, 2017, President
Trump recognized Jerusalem, the ancient capital of the
Jewish people, as the capital of the State of Israel.

o In taking this action, President Trump fulfilled a
major campaign promise of his and many previous Presidential
candidates.

• The Trump Administration is fully
coordinated in supporting this historic action by the
President, and has engaged broadly with both our
Congressional and international partners on this issue.

o President Trump’s action enjoys broad, bipartisan
support in Congress, including as expressed in the Jerusalem
Recognition Act of 1995. This Act was reaffirmed by a
unanimous vote of the Senate only six months
ago.

• President Trump has instructed the State
Department to develop a plan to relocate the U.S. Embassy
from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

• Departments and Agencies
have implemented a robust security plan to ensure the safety
of our citizens and assets in the region.

STATUS
OF JERUSALEM: President Trump recognizes that specific
boundaries of sovereignty in Jerusalem is highly sensitive
and subject to final status negotiations.

• President Trump recognizes that the status
of Jerusalem is a highly-sensitive issue, but he does not
think the peace process is aided by ignoring the simple
truth that Jerusalem is home to Israel’s legislature,
supreme court, President, and Prime
Minister.

• President Trump recognizes that the specific
boundaries of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem are subject
to final status negotiations between the
parties.

• President Trump reaffirms United States
support for the status quo at the Temple Mount, also known
as Haram al Sharif.

COMMITTED TO THE PEACE
PROCESS: President Trump is committed to achieving a lasting
peace agreement between Israelis and
Palestinians.

• President Trump remains
committed to achieving a lasting peace agreement between the
Israelis and Palestinians, and he is optimistic that peace
can be achieved.

• Delaying the recognition of Jerusalem
as the capital of Israel has not helped achieve peace over
the past two decades.

• President Trump is prepared to
support a two-state solution to the dispute between the
Israelis and Palestinians, if agreed to by the
parties.

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